THE WINNERS OF THE 2016 CFO INNOVATION AWARDS SHARE THEIR THOUGHTS ON STAYING AHEAD OF THE CURVE

Innovators are men and women who make a difference in their chosen endeavors. Through their energy, leadership, identification of opportunities and risks, big thinking, unwavering dedication, and farsightedness, the 12 CFOs being honored this year are bettering 12 companies or tax-exempt organizations. Their bold actions have brought increased resources and/or respect to their employers. We asked each of the winners what they would say about CFOs as innovators. Several spoke about creating or carrying forward the company’s strategy. Others mentioned getting the most from their team. What these CFOs do every day is not unique, but it is highly successful because they have clear goals, leadership agility, and a plan for dealing with risk.

CFO SUCCESS AWARD- CAPITAL

The CFO who has improved the organization’s capital structure in a novel and value-adding manner.

ANDREW EINHORN

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER, EDGE THERAPEUTICS, INC.

“Allocation of capital within your company is a balance between the classic economic dilemma of ‘unlimited wants vs. scarce resources.’ The challenge is to achieve this balance without stifling innovation, and, in fact, fueling it. One approach is to determine the amount of capital necessary to finance existing operations and devote the balance of capital available to those programs that truly enhance shareholder value, but don’t ‘break the bank.’ What we do is involve as many as possible in the allocation decision process so that there’s a sense of ownership and responsibility. This not only encourages our people to live within their budgets, but motivates them to innovate new ways to live within their budgets to meet our corporate goals.”

THE WINNERS OF THE 2016 CFO INNOVATION AWARDS SHARE THEIR THOUGHTS ON STAYING AHEAD OF THE CURVE

Innovators are men and women who make a difference in their chosen endeavors. Through their energy, leadership, identification of opportunities and risks, big thinking, unwavering dedication, and farsightedness, the 12 CFOs being honored this year are bettering 12 companies or tax-exempt organizations. Their bold actions have brought increased resources and/or respect to their employers. We asked each of the winners what they would say about CFOs as innovators. Several spoke about creating or carrying forward the company’s strategy. Others mentioned getting the most from their team. What these CFOs do every day is not unique, but it is highly successful because they have clear goals, leadership agility, and a plan for dealing with risk.

CFO SUCCESS AWARD- STRATEGY

The CFO who has led strategic initiatives that have resulted in significant enhancement of value, operations, realignment, rationalization, and/or financial performance.

MICHAEL DENTICI

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER, T&M ASSOCIATES

“T&M is a full-service engineering firm, so innovating and creating strategy for us — and for any service-oriented company — is about evaluating where the industry is going and being at the leading edge of new services and the investments needed to become a top service-provider for whatever market area we’re trying to penetrate. It’s important for a CFO, or any financial executive, to be sure the success of a new strategy can be measured. You have to establish the right KPIs [key performance indicators] for the new strategy, and it often helps to separate the new strategy from the core business and measure it differently, at least at the outset. My mission over the last four or five years is to be sure that the company is positioned financially to take advantage of any opportunity that presents itself, especially opportunities that require capital from a bank or investment in enhanced benefit programs necessary to attract and retain top talent. The right medical, 401(k), and other executive compensation plans are key in our business, and we are constantly evaluating those to be sure that we have them appropriately structured and financed correctly.”

THE WINNERS OF THE 2016 CFO INNOVATION AWARDS SHARE THEIR THOUGHTS ON STAYING AHEAD OF THE CURVE

Innovators are men and women who make a difference in their chosen endeavors. Through their energy, leadership, identification of opportunities and risks, big thinking, unwavering dedication, and farsightedness, the 12 CFOs being honored this year are bettering 12 companies or tax-exempt organizations. Their bold actions have brought increased resources and/or respect to their employers. We asked each of the winners what they would say about CFOs as innovators. Several spoke about creating or carrying forward the company’s strategy. Others mentioned getting the most from their team. What these CFOs do every day is not unique, but it is highly successful because they have clear goals, leadership agility, and a plan for dealing with risk.

CFO SUCCESS AWARD- TECHNOLOGY

The CFO who has led technological improvements across the organization that have resulted in significant enhancement in operations, productivity, information, and/or profitability. The judges looked for a CFO who was a big part of his or her organization’s technology transformation.

TALIA GRIEP

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER, BENJAMIN MOORE

“To be a CFO innovating with technology is to realize that the focus needs to be on a good implementation and all that entails, but more importantly, it is to be focused on the processes around the new technology and the people who perform those processes. Change management is vital to any good implementation. Continuous process improvement is an area of focus as well. Good and trusted advisers are key. … If you are innovating at any level, then you know that there are no sure things. The implementation could be rough, and you’d then have customer, vendor, and/or employee dissatisfaction. You could have cumbersome processes or a rejection due to poor change management. If you are pushing for change, the status quo will always push back. What makes for success is overcoming the doubt and persevering. …The main deterrent to innovation in a finance organization is that most people and organizations do not like or accept change easily. Many a career has been dashed on the shoals of the status quo. The key is to get buy-in one way or another and to push through the difficult spots. The process is not for the faint of heart, but the outcome is worth it.”